WINTON GROUP Ltd Sells 26,872 Shares of Graco Inc. $GGG

Key Points

• WINTON GROUP Ltd cut its Graco stake by 90% in the second quarter, selling 26,872 shares and retaining 3,000 shares valued at approximately $227,000. Institutional investors overall own 93.88% of Graco.
• Graco reported quarterly EPS of $0.91, beating estimates of $0.81, while revenue of $590.55 million fell short of expectations but increased 3.3% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.295, or $1.18 annualized, representing a 1.5% yield. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $95, compared with the stock’s reported $76.21 price.

WINTON GROUP Ltd lowered its holdings in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 90.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,000 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 26,872 shares during the period. WINTON GROUP Ltd's holdings in Graco were worth $227,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Engineers Gate Manager LP grew its holdings in shares of Graco by 94.0% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 102,543 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $7,753,000 after purchasing an additional 49,678 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its stake in shares of Graco by 409.1% during the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 13,975 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,057,000 after buying an additional 11,230 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Graco by 5.4% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 47,534 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,594,000 after buying an additional 2,455 shares in the last quarter. Nykredit A S bought a new position in shares of Graco in the 2nd quarter valued at $5,935,000. Finally, Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Graco by 7.5% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 2,090,184 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $158,039,000 after acquiring an additional 146,032 shares during the last quarter. 93.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Graco Stock Down 0.5%

NYSE GGG opened at $76.21 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $12.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.96, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.92. Graco Inc. has a twelve month low of $72.51 and a twelve month high of $95.69. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $78.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $79.88.

Graco (NYSE:GGG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $590.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $608.06 million. Graco had a return on equity of 19.54% and a net margin of 23.53%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.75 EPS. Research analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 3.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 4th. Investors of record on Monday, October 19th will be paid a $0.295 dividend. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 19th. Graco's payout ratio is currently 37.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird set a $94.00 price objective on Graco in a research report on Friday, July 24th. DA Davidson reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of Graco in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings raised Graco from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Graco from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded Graco from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $95.00.

Graco Company Profile

Graco Inc is a manufacturer of equipment used to manage, measure, control and apply fluids and coatings. Its products include pumps, valves, meters, regulators, dispensing systems, spray equipment and automated lubrication systems used in manufacturing, construction, vehicle service and other industrial applications.

The company serves a range of end markets through businesses focused on contractor equipment, industrial systems and process equipment. Its offerings support applications such as painting and protective coatings, sealant and adhesive dispensing, lubrication, fluid transfer, water and wastewater treatment, and the handling of chemicals and other materials.

Founded in Minneapolis in 1926, Graco traces its origins to equipment developed for dispensing automotive grease.

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